


Feel My Heart Care

by SlarStarsFanFics



Series: Hey What's With the Strange Breed? [1]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Blood and Gore, Diego Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Fix-It, Gen, Good Parent Grace Hargreeves, Good Sibling Diego Hargreeves, Graphic Description of Injuries, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Luther Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Major Character Injury, Pre-Season/Series 01, Reginald Hargreeves' A+ Parenting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:28:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23380912
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SlarStarsFanFics/pseuds/SlarStarsFanFics
Summary: Luther was still his brother, and he was their mother’s son. He would go help.-Luther’s last mission goes a little differently, and somehow, that changes everything.
Relationships: Allison Hargreeves & Diego Hargreeves, Allison Hargreeves & Luther Hargreeves, Allison Hargreeves & Vanya Hargreeves, Allison Hargreeves/Patrick, Diego Hargreeves & Grace Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves & Luther Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves & Vanya Hargreeves, Klaus Hargreeves & Luther Hargreeves, Klaus Hargreeves & Vanya Hargreeves, Luther Hargreeves & Vanya Hargreeves, The Hargreeves Family
Series: Hey What's With the Strange Breed? [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1683361
Comments: 12
Kudos: 166





	1. Will You Be My Breathe In The Deep Water

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [How Am I Gonna Make It Better If I Can't Go Back?](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20588030) by [SlarStarsFanFics](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SlarStarsFanFics/pseuds/SlarStarsFanFics). 



> This is a rewrite of an old fic of mine. I still like the concept but my execution was trash so I’m trying again. 
> 
> Rated t for cursing and injuries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Title from Deep Water - American Authors

Diego cracked an egg into his mouth. The boilers hissed and hummed around him. He had just moved into this shithole and had yet to make it home. The phone rang, and he hurried to swallow the yoke.

“Hello?”

“Diego, dear, how are you?”

“Mom? I’m fine, what’s up?” It wasn’t the norm for him to get a phone call from  _ any  _ member of his family, especially not his mother, who he could have sworn was banned from using the phone.

“Well, I’m hoping for a favour. Your father has sent your older brother on a mission,” Diego groaned at Luther being mentioned. “Now, Pogo has told me that this mission is quite dangerous, and I was wondering if you could check on him.” 

Now, Diego and Luther didn’t get along, but the sheer amount of worry in his mother’s voice made Diego accept the request, no questions asked. Luther was still his brother, and he was their mother’s son. He would go help. 

He got the address, hung up, then headed to his car. 

* * *

  
The first thing he heard when he got to the scene was gunshots. Metal creaked and something blew up. Diego booked it towards the door.

_ Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckshit! _

He kicked the door open and the overwhelming scent of burnt flesh hit his nose. Bile crept up his throat, quickly followed by an overwhelming panic. He started running through the burning debris, stepping over the dead bodies on the floor. He searched each face, hoping that it wasn't who he was looking for. Finally, he did. The panic didn’t quench.

Luther’s chest was covered in bloody chemical burns, and chunks of flesh were missing from his body. Metal beams had ripped up his skin and one had punctured the side of his arm. Diego stumbles away from the body and vomited. A sudden realization hit him; if Luther stays here, he’ll die. It’s an obvious observation looking back, but at the moment, it was a terrifying revelation. 

He managed to pull his brother out of the rubble, murmuring words of comfort in response to the pained moans and cries that he let out. Every sound that Luther made caused Diego’s heart to ache. 

_ I can’t take him back home. _

They got outside and Diego propped Luther up against a wall. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and called 911. Once sure that help was on the way, he dropped onto the ground next to his bleeding brother. Luther’s breathing was strained and hitching. Diego tried to assess the extent of his injuries. 

“-Dee?”

Diego looked up, shocked. 

_ How the fuck is he awake? _

“Hurts…”

“I called an ambulance.” He replied, focusing once more on the injuries. 

“-wanna go home…”

Something about that statement hurt Diego more than he could say.

“I can’t take you home, not now.”

“Want mom..”

“Me too bud.” But no matter how much he adored his mother, he knew she would tell Reginald, and he can not know. 

Diego pulled a rag out or the mini makeshift first aid kit on his harness. He wiped up as much of the blood as he could, then tossed the rag away. 

_ Damnit where is that ambulance? _

“Wha’ are you doin’ here?”

“Chasin after your stupid ass.” 

“...Why?”

Diego frowned. Why wouldn’t he?

“Because I’m not losing another brother. Not like this.”

“Oh-“ 

Luther went silent. Silence probably isn’t good. Diego kept working. He managed to hamper the bleeding a little bit when the sirens came into earshot. 

_ Thank- whatever higher power there is. _

The paramedics assessed the damage and piled him into the ambulance. Somebody pulled Diego out of his trance and asked if he wanted to ride along. He said yes without hesitation. 

As they set off, he was grasping his brother’s fingers. 


	2. If We Hit On Troubled Water (I'll Be The One To Keep You Warm And Safe)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They get to the hospital and Vanya and Allison are called.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a reminder, this is before Vanya’s book, so there’s little to no animosity between her and Diego. I headcanon that they were slightly close as children, hence how betrayed Diego felt because of the book. Also they had a band together in the comics and I want that to be a thing so bad.  
> Title from Brother - Kodaline

“Patient’s name?”

“Uh- Luther. Luther Hargreeves.”

“And what is your relationship to the patient, sir?”

“He’s my brother.”

The receptionist looked him up and down with a scrutinizing eye.

“Adopted.” He clarified. She hummed. 

“Alright, I just need you to fill out these forms.” She said, handing him a clipboard. 

Diego sat down in an uncomfortable plastic chair and filled out the forms in silence. It's not like it's the first time he's had to do this. He did it for Klaus all the time, on the occasions that he stumbled onto his doorstep, a little too roughed up or after having a little too much of whatever it was that he took. This felt different though. 

For years, Luther seemed untouchable. Yeah, he had gotten injured on missions before, but he always suffered in silence until collapsing in his room. He had always refused to be weak in front of the others. 

Now Diego felt helpless. For years, he had wanted to be Number One, he had resented his brother for it! But seeing what had happened to Luther under their father's authorization, he had a lot to reconsider. 

Hours passed while Diego was in a state of hypnagogia. 

”Mr. Hargreeves?”

He shook himself awake. ”Hmm?”

A nurse was standing over him. ”Mr. Hargreeves, the doctor would like to speak with you about your brother.”

Diego jumped to his feet and followed the nurse out of the room. 

  
  


”Well, he's stable. I'm afraid that that's the only good news I can give you. His torso is covered in chemical burns, and they will scar. It's unavoidable.”

Diego nodded. They all had scars, it was an occupational hazard. 

”As I said, he is stable. However, it is tentative. He suffered major blood loss and he will require physical therapy if he pulls through. Do you have any other family members who can support him throughout this time, or are you the only one?”

_Am I?_

”No- I- We have five- sorry, three other siblings.”

The doctor looked confused.

”We lost two of our brothers when we were kids.”

A look of sympathy crossed the doctors face. ”That's horrible, my condolences. How about parents?”

_Fuck no._

“None that are safe to contact.”

“I see. Well, I suggest that you call your siblings and make them aware of the situation if you haven’t already. You should be able to see your brother by tomorrow morning at the latest.”

“Thank you.” 

Diego left the room and pulled out his phone. He called Allison first, but only managed to reach her manager. Klaus was unreachable always, so that left Vanya. 

“Hello?”

“Hey sis, we’ve got a problem.”

“Diego? What’s wrong?”

“Luther’s hurt. We’re at the hospital, can you come down?”

There was ruffling from the other line and the sound of a door opening. “I’ll be down in twenty minutes. Where are you?”

“ER waiting room.”

“Okay, meet you there.”

* * *

  
Vanya, true to her word, came bursting through the automatic doors twenty minutes later. She made a B-line for Diego. 

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her into a half-hug. She put her arm around his back.

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

They moved to the seats and sat down. Diego filled her in on the situation.

“So when can we see him?”

“The doctor said tomorrow morning at the latest. I left Allison a message, she might be able to show up. As usual, I couldn’t get a hold of Klaus.”

“Okay, did you tell Mom and Dad?”

“Nah. Like hell I'm letting that asshole near him again, and if I told Mom then she would have to tell him.”

Vanya nodded her understanding. “So where will he go? Once he gets out and everything.”

“I don’t know. It’s his choice, and knowing how scared of dad he is, he’s gonna want to go home…” he trailed off.

Vanya prodded him to keep going. “So?”

“So we convince him otherwise.”

  
  


They sat in a companionable silence for a while before Diego got a callback from Allison. He moved to the hallway and answered.

“Diego, what’s going on? My manager said that it was an emergency, but you didn’t leave any other information. Are you hurt, do you need something?”

“Nah it’s not me. Luther was in an accident, do you have time in your busy, movie star schedule to come down?”

“I’ll make time. I’m getting a taxi to the airport right away, tell me what happened!”

He did. Allison got to the airport and hung up. Diego walked back to the waiting room and slumped down into the stupid, flimsy chair. Vanya stared at him expectantly. 

”Allison’s on her way down.”

”Okay.”

”I refuse to sleep in this stupid chair.”

”You can stay at my apartment for the night if you want. It'll be easier to get here tomorrow if we're in the same car.”

”Well my car is at the scene still, so I'll take you up on that.”

Vanya drove him home and shoved the door open. They tossed pillows and blankets onto the couch. She opened the fridge.

”Do you want anything? I've got coffee and leftover pizza.” 

”Well I can't refuse free food.”

* * *

It’s safe to say that neither of them slept that night. In the morning he texted Allison where they were. Vanya woke up and made them breakfast and coffee, then they hopped into the car and drove back to the hospital. Allison pulled up next to them in the parking lot. 

She ran out of her rental and hugged them both. They headed inside and went straight to the front desk. 

”We’re here to see Luther Hargreeves.”

“Are you all relatives?”

“Yeah, we’re his siblings.”

“Right this way. He woke up about an hour ago. We have informed him of the extent of his injuries and of who brought him in.” 

The nurse escorted them down the hallway to Luther's room. When she opened the door, he was laying on the bed with tubes and drips hooked up to most of his body. He was extremely pale, looking whiter than the bandages covering his chest and ribs. His head rolled in their direction and a pained but genuine smile covered his face. 

”Hey man. How are ya feeling?”

”Not great.” His voice sounded rough and gravelly. 

They all grabbed stools and sat next to the hospital bed. 

”What are you all doing here?”

”You're our brother.” Vanya said. ”Where else would we be?” 

He shrugged. “Is umm.. is Dad here?”

Diego, Allison, and Vanya stared at each other awkwardly. Vanya spoke up “No. No he’s not… Luther, do you remember what happened to you?”

“Kind of… I was on a mission and something happened with a chemical weapon…”

“Dad sent you on a suicide mission.” Diego said bluntly, “The asshole sent you on a suicide mission and you almost died.”

Allison slapped his arm. Vanya looked irritated. 

”I'm just telling him the truth.”

”Yeah well, shut up.” Allison retorted.

While they bickered Vanya reached over and squeezed Luther’s hand, carefully avoiding the wires. He smiled softly. 

”Luther, we've been talking, and we don't know if it's safe for you to go back to the house after this…” Luther looked like he was about to argue. Vanya raised her hands defensively. ”It’s up to you, but you almost died! Dad let you go in that mission, knowing perfectly well how dangerous it was. Who's to say he won't do it again? And next time you might not be this lucky.”

His face screwed up a little, and he let his head fall back onto his pillow. Allison and Diego finally broke it up and turned their attention back to the situation at hand. 

”Vanya what did you say, why is he crying?” Diego said, baffled. 

”I'm not crying…”

”Then why are there tears in your eyes, big boy?”

Luther glared at him. 

“Seriously? After all that’s happened, you guys are still squabbling?” Allison asked.

“Oh your one to talk-“

A nurse walked in before they could start fighting again. 

“Excuse me, I'm afraid I'll have to ask you all to leave, I have to perform a few tests.”

”Of course!” Vanya said, pulling Allison and Diego up and out, but not before saying goodbye to their brother, once again, leaving him alone.


	3. Get Up, Get Out, Get Away

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything works out in the end  
> Chapter title from Open Your Eyes - Snow Patrol

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I might make this a series, so I left it open ended. I mean, it's not like I'm short in time!

Once out in the hallway, they heard a commotion in the waiting room. They went to investigate.

“Hello, I’m here to see my dear old big brother, can anyone point me in the direction, oh there’s some of my siblings, ‘ello.” Klaus said, swinging a feather boa around and grinning ear to ear. 

“Klaus? How did you find out where we were?”

“Oh, a little birdie told me! Actually, more like an octopus…” he trailed off, staring at a corner of the room, before snapping his head back in his sibling's direction. “What I am concerned about is why my dearest, darling siblings didn’t tell me what was happening! What the fuck?”

“You’re not exactly the easiest person to contact, Klaus.” Vanya said, attempting to pacify him. 

“Well yeah, but ol’ Number One is my brother too! You could have tried to contact me!”

“You’re right, we’re sorry. Can we go talk somewhere else please?” Vanya asked.

“Fiiiiiinnnnneeeeee.” He whined

* * *

  
As the nurse performed the tests, Luther pondered what his siblings had told him. Knowing that his father had sent him to his death… what was he supposed to do with that? His father just wanted what was best for him, right? He must have had a good reason. His family didn’t want him returning home, but where else did he have to go? 

Nowhere. There was nowhere to go. He didn’t have any job qualifications, he couldn’t afford a house or apartment, heck, he couldn’t afford food! How was he supposed to function in the real world? 

He was so happy to see his family again, after years of seclusion. He had been so lonely after they had left, and he almost resented them for it. He decided not to disclose these feelings to his siblings. 

The tests were done and his family was let back in, this time with Klaus. His bubbly younger brother skipped to his bedside and pressed a kiss onto his forehead.

“Hello mon grand frère! How are you feeling?”

“I’m alright Klaus.” 

“Bullshit.” Diego said with certainty. “So, you made a decision yet?”

Allison elbowed him in the ribs. 

“I- I don’t know. I don’t know what I would do if I did leave! Where would I go? I don’t have money, I never got a degree, I can’t get a job!”

“You could stay with one of us!” Vanya suggested. “You could get a job, or get a degree if you want.”

Allison nodded her agreement. “You could live a real-life! Get away from dad, from that house, from everything.”

Luther wasn’t sold on his father not caring. He was just a little distant, he always had been, even more so after Ben’s death. He must care. If his father didn’t care, then what was Luther’s purpose? He was Number One, Space Boy! He was groomed to be a leader and a hero, if he wasn’t that, then who is he? He covered his tear-pricked eyes with his hands. 

He felt a hand rest on his arm, right above his IV. He moved his hands to cup his nose so he could see. It was Diego’s hand.

“Listen; you can take this opportunity and walk away from this hospital a free man! Or, you can go back to that house, and stay under dad’s thumb. It’s your choice, but remember, we’re here for you either way.”

Luther offered his brother a weak smile. “I gotta think about it. It’s a lot, ya know?” 

They all told him that they understood. They figured it was time to step out and so, they left him to his thoughts.   
  


* * *

Diego, Allison, Klaus, and Vanya went to get lunch. Allison offered to pay, and so naturally, the others picked a somewhat more expensive restaurant than usual. They got their food and found a park to sit in. They had a lot to talk about. 

For example, who would Luther live with if he decided to leave the academy? 

Allison was a newlywed who for sure didn’t have the time or a support system for her brother, but she did have money and a close relationship with him. 

Klaus opted out immediately. No one argued.

Vanya was willing, but she was not rich and didn’t have much space. 

Diego has space in his boiler room, but his low tolerance for his brother and again, lack of money would prove to be a problem.

By the time they got back to the hospital, they still hadn’t come to a decision. They figured that Luther could break their impasse. But when they got there, he was asleep.

Allison had to go call her husband and find a hotel room. Vanya had a recital, and now, knowing that her brother was in the clear, she could go in good conscience. Klaus went to do whatever but promised that he would return. Diego was the only one left by dinnertime. 

Luther woke up again around sunset. Diego was perched by the window, seemingly watching the sun go down. Luther noticed how at peace he looked. A soft glow covered his face and his brown eyes reflected the streetlights that had just turned on. 

”The doctors will let you out in a week or two.”

“Okay.”

He was clearly holding back. Luther figured he knew what. 

“I uh, I’m not going back. To the academy.”

Diego shifted away from the window and dropped onto a seat. “Okay. What’s our game plan?”

“I hadn’t thought that far ahead…” 

“So what, were you planning on just living in the streets or some shit? Because that’s not an option, brother.”

“I don’t know.”

“Well, the rest of us tried to figure out who you’d stay with depending on your choice, but as usual, none of us came to a conclusion.” He kicked his feet up onto the bed. “I mean, Allison has room and money, but she’s never home, so you’d be with her husband most of the time. Klaus doesn’t have a house, and Vanya was a maybe...”

“And you?”

“I live in a boiler room.”

“Ah. Wait what?”

“Don’t question it.”

“Okay. I mean, I’m sure it’s great, I wasn’t trying to diss it or anything.”

“Hey, Luther?”

“Yeah?”

“Shut up.”

* * *

Over the next few days, the siblings switched visitation daily. For the first week, they still couldn’t figure out who he would stay with. By the end of the week Allison went home. Finally, they made a decision.

Luther would stay with Vanya. He’d go to physical therapy and get a job. One able, Him and Vanya would split the rent once he made enough, and hopefully, eventually, he’d be able to move out. 

Finally, Luther was discharged with a shit ton of instructions on how to, you know, not die. He got a job at a little coffee shop on the corner. He never thought that that would be a thing that he’d enjoy, so he was pleasantly surprised. 

He suggested family therapy for the four of them left. After a lot of deliberation, they all agreed. Sometimes Allison would video call for a session. 

Klaus had managed to get sober for the first time in years. No one was sure where he was living.

Diego has suggested trying to get Mom out of that house. No one was sold on the idea, but a week later, Diego showed up on Vanya and Luther’s welcome mat with Grace in tow. He had convinced Pogo to help deprogram the loyalty to Reginald that was ingrained in her since the beginning. 

About a year after the incident, Allison announced her pregnancy. They were all at the hospital in California for Claire’s birth, much to Patrick’s chagrin. It’s not that he disliked his in-laws, they just took up so much space. 

By the time that Five returned, they were as functional as the Hargreeves could be. Which is why they were shocked to hear about the world's end. But they would figure it out. After all, they were a family.

**Author's Note:**

> Fic title from Blank You Out - Seafret  
> All of the titles are on my playlist that you can find here [Here](https://open.spotify.com/user/412q13hp9hevay4lf6ne36wvq/playlist/2NfS9WTCTWgHV1lIbuXoqB?si=PkuT178zQpy728xTCSTd4w)


End file.
